


Somewhere Up There

by miyeokguk



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Aliens, Fae Boys, M/M, Urban Fantasy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-12
Updated: 2017-08-12
Packaged: 2018-12-14 14:51:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 16,384
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11785443
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/miyeokguk/pseuds/miyeokguk
Summary: Yixing trips over an unconscious body in the alley.  A really beautiful, pointy-eared body.  Baekhyun is suspicious.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Based on prompt #151
> 
> Super thank you to L for the beta! Thank you to A for help with the ending ♡ Thank you mods for running the fest! And thank you to the prompter of #151, I had lots of fun writing this :)

Yixing wanders home through the drizzle with a sack of apples.  The bag, heavy on his wrist, pulls down on his shirt cuff.  The guitar case in his other hand bangs against his side.  Yixing hopes the elevator is working today.  His eyes drift shut in relief as he approaches the overhang at the front of the building.  It's a long walk uphill from the station. 

"Oof!" One of the bag handles tears when Yixing trips.  The apples go rolling.  One skitters to a stop beside the body Yixing has just stumbled upon, literally.  Yixing's breath catches against the roof of his mouth like steam trapped under a pot lid.  The apple resting near the still form reminds Yixing of Snow White, as does the pale skin stretched over the man's cheekbones.  At least Yixing thinks it's a man lying on the pavement.  He squints closer at the golden hair spread in a halo on the asphalt.  A few strands drifting in a puddle look like seaweed.  The features are so delicate it's hard to tell.

"Well, are you gonna just _stand_ there?"  A familiar voice echoes against the brick walls closing in the alley.  Yixing tilts his head up to blink at the fifth floor of the building crowded beside his apartment complex.

"Hello, Baekhyun.  Rather a wet day we're having."  Yixing waves.

"Well, I can see _that,"_ Baekhyun huffs.  He waves a pair of binoculars for emphasis and the neck strap flails in the air.  "I also saw him fall."

"Him?"  Yixing glances back down at his feet, wondering if Baekhyun knows for sure or if he's just guessing that Snow White here is a _him_.

"He fell!  From up there!"  Baekhyun adjusts the black cap on his head to better keep the rain off.

"From the sky, hm."  Yixing hums low in his throat as he crouches.  He needs to move the wayward apples off the sidewalk so no passersby will trip.

"Well, duh!  What else is up there but the sky?"  Baekhyun turns on his heel, skidding dangerously across his balcony before slamming the door behind him.

"He could have fallen from an airplane," Yixing says to one but himself, although he already has an inkling of the stranger's potential origins.  He sets his guitar against the dry bit of wall shielded by the overhang and gently lifts the Snow White stranger in his arms.

"Oof," Yixing huffs again, fingers scrambling for purchase on the stranger's damp clothes that are bunched at the knees.  He's almost sure it's a guy now, feeling the compact hip bones braced against his belly dig into his skin.  Yixing has lifted many unconscious bodies in his line of work, and he can usually tell the age and body type of a person cradled to his chest.  Sometimes it's hard to tell for sure though.  Yixing squints again, peering down at Snow White's face.  He would bet a six-pack of Hite that the body he's holding belongs to a man in his mid-twenties, but the features of the face cushioned against his left shoulder are so finely formed, the skin so soft looking, that the stranger would appear to be no more than four years old.  That is, if he weren't so tall and his head weren't so large, cranial plates already fused in place beneath that mass of dripping, golden hair.

Despite his delicate, fine-boned appearance, this stranger feels as though he weighs twice as much as Yixing.  Yixing gives another _oof_ for good measure, hoisting Snow White a bit higher as the automatic doors at the front of the building swish open at his approach.  Without gravity there would be no rain, but Yixing wishes in moments like these, his shoulders straining, the pull of Earth gravity wasn’t so strong.  

Inside the lobby Yixing jabs the elevator button with his elbow.  It doesn't chime.  Yixing tries the button once more before heaving a sigh and turning on his heel to face the stairs.  It could be worse, he thinks to himself.  He could live on the fifteenth floor instead of the fifth.  He silently thanks whoever it is watching out for him that his constant wishing to live on the top floor, the farthest floor from Baekhyun's neighboring balcony, has not proved productive.  Not even dealing with Baekhyun could be worse than hauling a human anvil up fifteen flights in wet flip flops.

Yixing takes that back as soon as his doorbell rings.  He groans, eyeing the dripping, unmoving form he just laid to rest on his sofa before scurrying for the door.  Baekhyun manages to punch the bell twice more before Yixing can yank the door open.

"How did you get up here this fast?"  Yixing sighs when Baekhyun's black cap starts dripping rainwater onto his bare toes.  "The elevator's broken, isn't it?"

"Emergency stairs."  Baekhyun shrugs. "Speaking of which," he drops his voice to a whisper, hunching his slight frame enough that Yixing has to bend forward to hear him.  "This is an emergency, I think."

"What?"  Yixing shakes his head to clear the mist from his ears, not sure he's heard right.

"Here, come here," Baekhyun waves him into the hall.

"I just got home, Baekhyun.  I'm not leaving again til the rain stops.  Just say your piece right here."

"As I was _saying,"_  Baekhyun hisses, voice pitching higher in annoyance, "that, that guy who fell from the sky, I think he's an emergency!  I think you should call the NIS immediately while I keep an eye on 'im with my laser gun!"

"You mean your... _taser_ gun, Baekhyun?"  Yixing rolls his eyes to the ceiling, dreading the moment they will roll back down to focus on his neighbor again.  "As much as the NIS appreciates your voluntary patrolling of the neighborhood for extraterrestrial activity, I'm pretty sure I know an alien when I see one on my couch."

"But--"

Yixing taps the sole of his flip flop on the wet tile.  "Thank you, but we're alright.  I'll see you when it stops raining."

Baekhyun's shoulders go rigid under the lumpy cables of his black pullover, but he scuffles out of the entryway so Yixing can close the door.  Yixing turns the deadbolt and slides the chain into the lock for good measure.

He rolls his shoulders back, hunting for a towel in the coat closet that's old enough wipe his feet on.  Snow White has already dripped a series of small puddles on the floor, parallel to the length of the couch.  Yixing shucks off his musty sweater as he jogs to the bedroom to find something clean to wrap the stranger in.

Despite the stranger's odd heaviness, his limbs are compliant as Yixing slides the loose linen trousers and soft knit tunic off of him.  His underwear seems damp, too, but Yixing leaves that be.  It's some kind of loincloth, and he can't see any closure or way to unwrap it.  Yixing blushes although Snow White can't possibly have comprehended his train of thought, even if Baekhyun claims he can read Yixing's thoughts just by looking at his face.  The stranger's eyes are still closed.  Yixing quickly bundles him into his favorite pajamas, soft pink flannel with small white bunnies on them.

He crosses the living room to close the window he forgot to shut this morning.  Yixing waves once to Baekhyun, who's still got his binoculars pressed against the opposite window, before snapping the window blinds shut.  "It's a wonder Baekhyun doesn't suspect _I'm_ an alien," he murmurs to himself.  He's not used to having anyone to talk to around the house.  

Heading back towards the sofa, he wonders at the perfect stillness of the body lying boneless on the cushions.  Not even Snow White’s eyelashes flutter.  Yixing kneels down before setting his palms lightly over a large bruise marring Snow White's wrist.

Yixing allows the faint blue glow to seep from his fingerpads for just a moment, not wanting to burn the stranger with too much heat.  He's still perfecting the length of time the light takes to heal various infirmities in homo sapiens.  He doesn't get many chances to practice since he can't exactly utilize his healing powers in the ER of Severance Hospital.  At least Yixing restricts himself when he thinks anyone might be looking.

A gust of breeze rattles the window sash as Yixing sits back on his heels to examine his work.  Perfect.  The bruise has faded and the soft skin of Snow White's wrist now blends seamlessly with his forearm.  Yixing slides the flannel sleeve up to Snow White’s elbow to skim his fingertips over the next wound.  He should have left the pajamas off until he was finished, Yixing thinks with a laugh.  But Snow White might have gotten cold lying naked on the now soggy sofa cushions.

It takes twenty minutes before Yixing is satisfied with his work.  He heads back down the hall towards his bedroom to find a bath towel.  The stranger's hair is still wet, and Yixing doesn't want him to catch cold.  He grabs two blue towels off the pile in his closet, just in case.

Yixing stops still in front of the stove on his return to the sofa, dropping the towels to the tile floor.  Snow White is sitting up on the armrest, his hair completely dry.  "Well, I'll be," Yixing drawls.  He stoops to pick up the towels, not looking away from the stranger.  "Now how did you do that?  You didn't dry your hair on my persian rug, did you?"

Snow White stares back at him and blinks twice.  Yixing wonders if that means something.  Perhaps the stranger might like to borrow some eye drops.  "Do you need-- ah, want anything else?"  Yixing unfolds one of the towels and starts to dry his own hair and neck.  "I would offer you the use of my shower, but since you just got all dry and cozy..."

The stranger’s eyes track the movements of Yixing's hands as he waves them for lack of words.  He doesn't say anything in answer, though.  His eyes are a wet, polished black that remind Yixing so much of Mei, although it’s been so long that Yixing doesn’t fully trust his memory.  

"Okay, well, if you think of something later just holler, okay?  I'm not the best cook in the world, but we can always order takeout.  Takeout?"  Yixing points to the sizable collection of delivery menus stuck to the fridge with an assortment of fruit shaped magnets.  Snow White doesn't even blink this time.  "Well, suit yourself I guess.  I'm gonna have yogurt before bed.  Oh, shoot, wait.  I forgot about my guitar."

The stranger cocks his head to one side.  He looks like a robin bending to listen for worms underground and that thought makes Yixing smile.  "I guess I can leave you alone for a minute.  I'll be right back."  Yixing grabs a single carton of peach yogurt from the fridge.  He sets it in front of Snow White on the coffee table along with a small spoon, just in case he gets hungry while Yixing runs downstairs.

"Bye!"  Yixing jams his still damp flip flops on his feet and heads towards the elevator, sliding right up to the doors before he remembers it's out of service.

He is panting by the time he jogs back up with his guitar and most of the apples in the broken plastic sack in tow.  An odd choking sound fills the still apartment as Yixing pushes through his front door.

"Are you al--?"  Snow White is gasping for air, long fingers pressed up against his throat.  Yogurt is spilled on the carpet in a white streak.  Yixing takes one look at the lacy red rash ringing Snow White’s lips and dashes for the bathroom to grab one of his Epipens.  His heart beats with urgency against the back of his throat and he almost trips on the edge of the carpet.

When he reaches the living room Snow White is sitting up on the sofa again and smiling, hands folded neatly in his lap. The hives still surround his mouth, but even the rash seems to have faded.

"You stopped choking," Yixing says lamely, still trying to catch his breath.  WIth a miraculous recovery like this he would think the stranger was pulling a prank if it weren't for the haze of fear still misting the edges of Snow White's dark eyes.  Snow White doesn't even blink in response this time.  He just stares.  "Well, as long as you're sure you're alright..."  Yixing sets the Epipen upright in the mug on the kitchen counter that holds his colored pencils.  Perhaps it's not a bad idea to keep it in close reach, just in case.

A damp dishcloth takes care of the yogurt spill.  Yixing finds the spoon under the coffee table, stray bits of carpet fuzz sticking to its convex side.  He was planning to eat cup noodles for dinner but now he's worried that the stranger might have a sensitivity to MSG.  In any case, Yixing does not want to find out the hard way.  He settles for fried rice, pulling a can of corn from the top cupboard and some leftover ham from the fridge to add some flavor.  He doesn't add any sauce or seasonings except for some salt, just to be safe.

Yixing sets the table with chopsticks and spoons from the utensil drawer, then dishes the steaming rice into bowls before carrying them to the table.  He adds a few side dishes from the fridge but leaves those in the plastic containers he bought them in.  "Well, dig in."  Yixing starts shoveling the food into his mouth, forgetting about table manners because he so rarely eats with others present.  The hospital cafeteria doesn't count, because his usual lunch is a pouch of coffee milk drained while standing up and followed with a few handfuls of trail mix.  Yixing looks up when he reaches for some bean sprouts with his chopsticks.

"Aren't you hungry?"  He gestures with his wrist at the untouched bowl in front of the stranger.  "What, you can't be allergic to rice, can you?"  Yixing frowns, trying to remember the statistics on various food intolerances, but as far as he can remember rice is typically a hypoallergenic substance.  Far more than most other grains, that is.  Maybe Snow White is just anxious about trying the food because of his reaction earlier today, Yixing guesses.  He eyes his guest in curiosity and stuffs the rest of the sauteed fish cakes into his mouth.

Yixing gets up to stack his dishes at the sink and gestures for Snow White to bring his, too.  Snow White brings the porcelain bowl to the counter but leaves the chopsticks and spoon on the place mat.  "Could you get those too?"  Yixing points again, in case the stranger is hard of hearing.

The stranger blinks, just once, and opens the silverware drawer to fish out a pair of lacquered bamboo chopsticks and a ceramic soup spoon.  He starts chewing, taking careful bites of the fried rice and sniffing at the contents of the bowl as he goes.

"Huh," Yixing wonders aloud as he snaps on a pair of rubber gloves.  The stranger is done eating by the time the sink is filled with detergent suds.  He stands next to Yixing at the sink and watches as the plates and bowls are dunked in the steaming water and then rinsed clean.  The only sound Snow White makes is a tiny gasp, a little mouse squeak that escapes through his teeth when Yixing picks up a spoon to wash it.  

"See, it's fine."  Yixing realizes what must have caused the allergic reaction.  He smiles his most reassuring smile as he holds up the spoon.  "And if you ever need to touch the stainless steel stuff in the kitchen, you can use these rubber gloves to prevent anaphylaxis."  Yixing frowns, leaving soap suds along his hairline when he scratches at his head.  He's not sure how much Snow White can understand, but his new house guest stares back with an intent, black glint in his eyes.  That makes Yixing think he must understand most of what he hears, even though he hasn't responded in words yet.

 

A few more days go by, the 4 AM to 2 PM ER shift settling into Yixing’s bones with a dull fatigue that sloughs off his shoulders like a snakeskin every time he slips out of his jacket in the entryway to the apartment and a dark eyed grin meets him at the door.  On Thursday Yixing comes home to fresh fruit on the counter.  His gaze slides between the heap of apples and grapes piled next to the sink, and Snow White's expectant smile.

"How did you... Oh."  Yixing breaks into a grin when Snow White points to a wrinkled sticky note taped to the fridge.  The tattered yellow square is crowded with Yixing's cramped handwriting, the lock code for the front door along with his other important passwords scrawled in now-faded pencil lead.  "I should probably write those out more neatly for you, huh?  Since I guess you might be staying awhile."

Yixing strips off his hoodie and the button down he wore today beneath his lab coat, leaving his undershirt on so he won't have to change right away.  He picks up the paring knife from the dish drain and sighs in relief as cool air from the window settles over his bare arms.  Yixing can feel the weight of Snow White's eyes on him as he divests the largest apple of it's skin.  They share it, eating it piece by piece off the blade of the knife, and Yixing thinks aloud how wonderful it is to eat with someone, rather than alone.  Snow White smiles and steals the last slice out of Yixing's fingers.    

The next day, Yixing finds mushrooms and leeks rinsed and lined up on the cutting board.  He makes miso soup with the mushrooms, then sits down to open his laptop while Snow White is in the shower.  Yixing orders a ceramic knife from G-Market, checking the manufacturer's details to make sure the handle is a safe PVC composite.  They go to the home goods shop down the street that weekend to pick out more sets of wooden chopsticks.  Snow White chooses a set of brightly lacquered rainbow ones, and Yixing finds Teflon skillets hanging in the back to replace his old cast iron frying pans.

 

Yixing brings home a mackerel from the market on Monday, ready to break in his new skillet.  He opens the cabinet to pull out the cooking oil but bangs his elbow against the shelf when doorbell buzzes.  "Ah, couldn't they make the bell sound like chimes or something nice," he mutters as he rubs his tingling arm through his jacket sleeve.  Yixing shuffles to the door, already pretty sure who will be on the other side.

"Hello."  Yixing gives Baekhyun a genuine smile but keeps the chain lock in it's slot.

"Is that guy still here?"  Baekhyun's whisper carries further than Yixing's normal speaking voice does.  His shoulders jerk as he sniffles and he presses his nose up to the gap of the open door.

"Hm?  Oh yeah.  Apparently he likes cooking."  Yixing leaves out the part about Snow White's allergy to steel.  

"Cooking?  Do you think that's...normal?"  Baekhyun narrows his eyes, lashes batting intensely as he blinks.

"Well, most people I know who need food for sustenance cook on a daily basis.  Not everyone has your affection for pizza and yangnyeom chicken, dear neighbor."  Yixing fits his hand through the door gap to pat Baekhyun's head.

"Hmph.  That's just proof that I have a stomach of steel.  I'm a real man."  Baekhyun pulls his shoulders taut in a bristling swagger but the effect does not make him look that tough.  Yixing thinks he looks like a cat hissing at a sudden rain shower.

"I'm glad to hear that.  But since your arteries aren't made of steel, consider ordering salad once in awhile?"

Baekhyun sticks his tongue out but takes his time sauntering to the elevator.  Yixing manages to muffle his chuckle until the door is secured behind him.  The laugh turns into a splutter when he sees Snow White bent over the cutting board in the kitchen, slicing into a filet with deft strokes.  The fish skeleton, still intact, lies next to the decapitated head in the sink basin.

"Are you making sushi?"

"Yup.  This is fresh enough, but next time you should buy horse mackerel.  It tastes better.  Less fishy."

"You can talk?"  Yixing sits down on a bar stool, hard.

"Of course."  Snow White keeps slicing.  He finishes the first filet and positions the next one with precision.

"But I've been--"  Yixing has been rambling to his house guest all week like he usually narrates his daily life to himself when he's alone in the apartment.  He can feel all the blood in his limbs rushing to his face.  "I never even asked your name.  I'm sorry."

"Don't be.  You could call me Lu Han.  If you wanted to."  Lu Han slides the knife blade under the strips of fish to transfer them to a waiting plate.  “That’s what everyone called me at Spirit School.”

"So does this mean you’re gonna stay?" Yixing blurts, tongue thick with the heat that's saturated his face completely now as Lu Han turns to face him.  He realizes he should have asked this before buying an entire new kitchen, but he didn't know that conversing with Lu Han was an option.  

"Stay?"  Lu Han blinks.

"Like, you’re not gonna pull an E.T. and like, fly away on Baekhyun's bicycle?  Not that that wouldn't be hilarious, but--!”  Yixing's laugh shrills wild at the thought of Baekhyun watching his maligned house guest cross the sky like a witch on a broomstick.  The guy would go into cardiac arrest as he speed dialed the NIS.

"E.T.?"  Lu Han's stare is blank, unwavering but not unkind.

Yixing sighs.  Even if Lu Han can talk there still seem to be barriers besides the language one.  He stands up to look for the pickled ginger at the back of his fridge as Lu Han sets chopsticks and water glasses on the island.  "It's from a movie.  Never mind."

 

They end up watching _E.T._ after dinner.  Yixing stands outside Baekhyun's building in the rain until his neighbor deigns to open the lobby door, to ask if he has it on DVD.  Baekhyun, of course, does.

They eat microwave popcorn and Yixing watches Lu Han's profile out of the corner of his eye.  He's curious, maybe as curious as Baekhyun is to know where exactly it is that Lu Han fell from.  Lu Han's main reaction to film surprises Yixing, but does not reveal any clues as to his identity.  

"What do Reese's Pieces taste like?"  Lu Han is stretched out on the sofa, one foot propped on the coffee table and the other knee pulled into his chest.  "They looked like candy, but why are they orange?"  Yixing's sweats look too big for Lu Han when he's slouched like this, although they're about the same height.

"They are candy.  The inside is chocolate, I think."

"You haven't tried them either?"  Lu Han's eyes reflect the glare from the screen.  Yixing watches Lu Han’s mouth open in surprise, lips wavering once before pressing together.

Yixing shrugs and the fleece of his jacket sticks against the velour of the sofa.  "I don't think I've ever seen those in a store here.  Definitely not back home."  He fumbles the remote, thumb searching for the power button to silence the credits.  He still remembers his first taste of chocolate and how it had melted so slowly, so sweetly, under his tongue.  That had been decades ago.  

"Goodnight, Lu Han."

Lu Han slumps over as Yixing stands, shoulders tipping into the already warmed seat. Yixing pats his ankles as Lu Han pulls an afghan over his middle. He's been sleeping in living room since he arrived.  Maybe they should order another bed if he's really staying, Yixing muses as he retreats towards his bedroom.

 

Yixing wakes up early, disoriented.  He fumbles on his bedside table for his watch but his eyes are too bleary to read the face in the half light.  It must be early yet, he thinks as he takes in the lack of sunlight coming through the window .  And then Yixing realizes what must have woken him.

He stumbles into the living room in his slippers, following the strains of flute music that waft down the hallway towards his bedroom.  "What the--" Yixing bites back a curse when he almost slips into the splits in the entrance to the kitchen.  The floorboards and the kitchen tile are slick with beading moisture.  Yixing looks up and does a double take, wondering for a brief moment if he's still dreaming.  Enough water is pooled on living room carpet to splash in, and the water is dripping down from the ceiling as if the upstairs neighbor's shower is draining directly into the apartment.

"Um, Lu Han?"  Yixing waves his arms above his head in Lu Han's direction to get his attention.

Lu Han drops the wooden flute to his lap as soon as he notices.  He waves back with both hands.  "Oh!  You're awake!  Good morning."  

As the notes of the melody thin and then dissipate in the air, the rain slows to a stop.  Yixing watches in amazement as the soggy puddles turning his carpet into a swamp rapidly shrink and then completely dry up, leaving the pile not even damp to the touch.

"Hey, do that again!"  Yixing drops his watch next to the coffee maker on the island counter.  

“What, the music?”  Lu Han raises the flute again and purses his lips tentatively.

“The rain!”  Yixing steps into the living room as the melody and the misty fall of rain start up again.  It takes less than a minute for the warm rain to pool under the soles of his feet.   The smell of the rain is sweet, not spicy like the smell of Earth rain on loam, or lemony like the scent of precipitation in his homeland.  Yixing smiles at the magic of it.  

He spent ten long years training as an energy manipulator to be able to draw the blue light from the charge in the atmosphere, focus it in his palms, and release the life giving energy to heal wounds.  Even as a master manipulator he depends on the elements.  But this rain comes from him Lu Han himself, from the music inside him.  It’s as if Lu Han _is_ water, fluid and shimmering even when he’s sound asleep.

Yixing considers pulling his guitar case out of the coat closet but the music proves too tempting for his feet.  He starts to sway to the rhythm of Lu Han’s piping, every thought besides his delight in the dance and the warmth in Lu Han’s eyes washed away by the pure rain.  

When the song finishes Lu Han transitions into a reel, fingers flying faster as he gets to his feet to join Yixing.  

They dance, and wait for the sun to rise.

 

When they go to the Han River Park on Yixing's next Sunday off, he's prepared.  His lunch bag is stuffed with grapes and rice cakes and a bottle of makgeolli.  His knapsack, strapped to Lu Han's back, holds the paper cups and an old quilted blanket.  When they get to the subway station entrance Yixing pulls a pair of cotton gloves out of the back pocket and hands them to Lu Han.  "So you can hold the handrails,” he says and grins at Lu Han's confused look.  Then he gives Lu Han a T Money card and explains how to navigate line transfers while they wait on the boarding platform.

Lu Han strips off the gloves as soon as they emerge from the depths of the Line 5 station and stuffs them in Yixing's jacket pocket.  They head for the stairs that lead down into the park, ducking past an insistent woman handing out fliers for fried chicken.  Lu Han's face tightens as soon as he catches sight of the water.  He has his T-shirt half off before Yixing can stop him with a hand gripping his forearm.

"You can't get in the water here," Yixing says with a sigh. "That's why we brought all the food. Sit, eat, and look at the water."

Lu Han's eyes flash dark but soften as he looks around the slope leading down to the river bank. Hundreds of couples and groups of friends are clustered on blankets in every available spot of grass. Empty chicken, pizza, and beer containers overflow out of a nearby garbage bin.

"Well let's sit closer to the water then. I can't see much from all the way back here."  Lu Han grabs Yixing's arm this time. Yixing can feel the pressure of his blunt nails on his skin as Lu Han drags him in a zigzag path down the hill, across the bike path, and all the way to the rocks bordering the waves. The breeze is gentle but cool coming off the water. Despite two university students singing along to an electric guitar a few feet meters away Yixing can hear the lap, lap of swells in the water meeting the shore.

"The view is better down here, you're right.” Still standing, Yixing unzips the lunch bag.  He hands Lu Han a grape as Lu Han unfolds the blanket from his backpack. "So you like the river, huh? Do you also like to swim?"

Lu Han's face goes red, though Yixing has no guess as to why, heat seeping down his neck and past the collar of his T-shirt he borrowed from Yixing's closet.  "Yeah.  I like the water.  Including the river.  I grew up in one."

“You mean, next to one?”  Yixing settles onto the blanket with a sigh and smiles at the blue sky overhead.  It isn't often that the sky is so clear on a late summer day.  Even when it's not raining the thick gray canopy of the overcast sky looms over the city more days than not.  "I like the river, too.  It’s especially beautiful when it rains.”

“No, I mean in the river.  Where else would a nixie live?”  Lu Han laughs, as if this is obvious, as if Yixing should know what a sprite is.  “Have you been swimming in the rain?  It’s the best.”  Lu Han pops another grape in his mouth and chews, looking out over the water.  

“Nope.  Why, have you?”  There was never enough water for swimming in the tundra on Planet 357, where Yixing grew up.  No lakes, no rivers.  Just ground wells and the rain water they collected in reservoirs.  

“Sure.  It’s like dancing in the rain, but more wet.”  

Yixing laughs, amused by Lu Han’s serious eyes.  “I guess dancing in the rain feels more or less like taking a shower, just softer."

Lu Han laughs with his mouth open, choking on the grape.  "Aren't showers usually hot though?  The ones I see on TV always have lots of steam."

"Mm, it depends."

"Don't tell me you're one of those cold shower people?"  Lu Han's eyes blink at a furious rate. His lips are still parted so Yixing can see the dark grape juice staining the backs of his teeth.

"I meant, you know, warm summer rain?"  Yixing kicks his sandals off so he can scoot his hips further onto the quilt.

"Oh.  True."  Lu Han tips onto his side and curls his knees into his chest, like he often does when they're watching a movie on Yixing's TV.  It's become a habit, these past few weeks.  After dinner Yixing washes the dishes while Lu Han showers.  Then they stay up too late in front of the large screen until Yixing finally drags himself off for his own shower.  Lu Han is usually asleep under the afghan by the time Yixing tiptoes to the balcony to hang up his wet towel.

"Hey, what are you thinking about?"  Lu Han pokes at Yixing's knee with a bony finger.

"Just about showering," Yixing mumbles.  He tries not to stare at Lu Han's ears, at how the pointed tips peek out through the soft curls of his hair.  The shape of his ears is more visible when Lu Han is laying down like this, wispy hair falling off to the sides of his face.

Lu Han doesn't answer but starts humming along to the song the guitar guys are singing.  They've switched to a ballad now.  The vaguely melancholy tune makes Yixing's eyes start to droop.  He tips over onto his side too, feet curled near Lu Han's shoulders so the two of them make a sort of yin-yang shape on the blanket.

"Can we stay here for awhile?" Lu Han mumbles.  "The water is nice..."

"Yeah, the park stays open after dark.  And we can get delivery here if we run out of food."  Yixing thinks it's funny how they can't even see the water from this angle when they’re lying down but he doesn't want to move either, the noise and laughter of the park fading out like the soft blue edges of the sky when Lu Han's lips tuck into a small smile.  Yixing loves parks.  He always has.

 

The next time Yixing has to work a double shift he barely makes it up the stairs to the apartment.  Of course the elevator would break on his most exhausting day.  At least it's consistent, he thinks, smiling when that thought reminds him of how predictable Lu Han's culinary habits are.  Sure enough, Lu Han is busy carving a slab of raw salmon into neat slices when Yixing pushes through the door.  Yixing is hungry but his back hurts more than his stomach right now.  He makes a beeline for the bathroom, stripping to his jeans as heads down the hall.

The hot water is as soothing as he had dreamed of all the way home on the crowded subway and up four flights of stairs.  Yixing considers skipping dinner and just staying under the hot stream for the next hour.  His fingertips are starting to wrinkle when the bathroom door bursts open.  The shower curtain soon follows, spraying the bathroom walls with drips of condensation when Lu Han yanks it back.  One of Yixing's feet slips and he grabs for the towel rack so he won't fall.

"You don't mind if I join you, right?"  Lu Han maintains casual eye contact as he undoes the zipper and button of the jeans he's wearing.

Yixing's mouth won't close.  He tries but something gets stuck between the back of his throat and his teeth.  The pent up shock comes out in a soft yelp when Lu Han clambers over the side of the bathtub, completely naked now.  Lu Han braces his hand against Yixing's shoulder as he bends down to pump shampoo into his palm.

"Here, let me." Yixing holds still while Lu Han starts to rub the soap into his hair with careful, circular strokes of his fingertips.  "I loved swimming in the river with my grandmother when I was a kid.  We'd play hide and seek in the rushes, and then she'd sit me on this big rock in the middle while she washed my hair and back."  Lu Han's hum is as bright and warm as the water droplets splashing from his hands.  “Then she’d walk me to the portal every morning to send me off to school.”

"Why are you in my shower?"  Yixing finally manages to form the question into words as Lu Han adds more shampoo to his palm.

"Your shower?"  Lu Han's humming ends with an abrupt silence.  "I've been using this shower every day for weeks.  I wasn't aware that I wasn't supposed to use _your shower."_

Yixing would be surprised at the snap if he weren't already in shock because of the second set of shoulders rubbing against his in the shower.  Lu Han's voice is hard edged in sharp contrast to the way his fingers gently massage Yixing's scalp under the steady spray.

"I'm just--"  Yixing gasps for breath when he accidentally inhales some water.  "Just not used to sharing."  He's seen guys shower together in locker rooms on TV dramas, but not even Mei had seen him bathe before.  Yixing has never felt the urge to visit a public bath in Seoul.  He turns down Baekhyun every time he invites Yixing to the jjimjilbang.  

Lu Han's hands drop from Yixing's hair.  The water has been getting steadily hotter since Yixing first turned it on.  The steam is getting uncomfortable now, turning his skin a tight red.  Lu Han slides past Yixing to the front of the bath and adjusts the faucet.  He picks up the bar of face soap and starts bathing himself without further comment, but Yixing notices the careful amount of space Lu Han has put between them in the tight quarters.

Lu Han has freckles on his back, Yixing notices as he reaches up to finish shampooing his hair.  Most of the freckles are a soft brown but some are actually lighter than Lu Han's skin tone, giving the planes of his back a mottled look, something like a fawn's fur.  Yixing closes his eyes and tries to speed up his washing without missing any spots.

"Where does your grandma live?" Yixing asks as soon as they shut off the water and step onto the bathmat.  His muscles, sore from standing all day, feel much better after the hot water but the tension in Lu Han's broad shoulders doesn't relax.  Lu Han doesn't answer but takes the towel Yixing hands him.  He keeps his eyes on the floor as they dry off.  Yixing isn't sure if that's because Lu Han's trying to be respectful in close quarters or if Yixing's question made him feel that uncomfortable.

They get dressed before eating, pulling on pairs of Yixing's old workout sweats in whatever combinations they can find in the clean laundry basket.  It's a late dinner.  The sliced salmon pairs nicely with the rice and clear soup Lu Han sets in front of Yixing on the island counter.  They don't talk while eating, Yixing treading carefully and Lu Han seemingly lost in his own thoughts.  Yixing finds it hard to swallow even the sashimi, the rice sticking like grains of regret in his throat.  

They clean up the kitchen in silence.  Yixing focuses on breathing as he washes the plates, watching Lu Han scrape the leftovers into a carton.  Mei had always been the one to break the silence after a fight, Yixing remembers as he rinses soy sauce down the drain.  They had rarely argued In the years they were together, so in tune with each other’s moods that Yixing instinctively knew when to let Mei have her space.  

Lu Han is another story.  He gets excited about things like the free tissues they hand out in the subway.  He doesn’t cry during movies but he breathes faster during tense scenes.  His temper flashes between hot and cold faster than the time it takes for Yixing to become annoyed.  Yixing’s not sure how to appease Lu Han because he’s not even sure why he got upset, but is relieved when Lu Han gives him a smile when they say goodnight.  Yixing decides to apologize properly if they ever discuss it in words one day.  

He falls asleep remembering the first time he had danced in the rain, with Mei at their engagement party so long ago.  It’s funny, he thinks, that although she called the shots in their relationship he was the one who ended up leaving Mei behind.  On someone else’s orders, of course.  But Yixing still cannot shake the feeling that Mei had felt abandoned the day he joined the Star Challenger crew for lift off, even with their plans to marry upon his return.  How fitting that he should get left behind on Earth halfway into the voyage.  Yixing wonders who Lu Han has left behind, and many times he has felt abandoned in his lifetime.  He hopes the number is smaller for Lu Han than for most.  

 

Since Lu Han seems to like the water so much he even volunteers to wash the dishes some nights, Yixing decides to dig out the swim trunks.  It's getting too late in the season for a beach trip but the municipal center has an indoor pool.  Yixing doesn't know why he didn't think of it sooner, but he's never been the type for public pools.  Too much risk of verrucas, despite the chlorine.  

“What is that?”  Lu Han giggles when he sees Yixing’s swimming trunks patterned with palm fronds.  “Some kind of party costume?”

Yixing sighs, because they might as well be.  “It's for swimming.  You wear it in the water.”

“You wear clothes in the water?”  Lu Han shuffles closer to poke at the stiff fabric.  

“We're going to a public pool.  With like, small children and old ladies.  So yes, we have to wear clothes while swimming.”

“Oh!  When are we going?”  Lu Han bounces on his heels like one of the aforementioned small children.  

Yixing shrugs and pushes up his shirt sleeves.  “I guess we can go today.  If I can find my old suit.”  He’s pulled out his beach bag, badminton rackets, and hiking boots from the back of the closet, but no luck.  He can't find his faded orange trunks with the knotted drawstring he'd finally replaced last year.  Baekhyun had insisted Yixing buy a new suit before he would go to the beach with him last summer.  

“Here, let me help!”  Lu Han whirls into action, stuffing grip tape and bald birdies back into the gym bag and stacking everything neatly against the closet wall.  Shoes are lined up in boxes instead of heaped together, hats and scarves are folded and tucked onto the top shelf.  Lu Han hums in triumph as he pulls the orange suit out from behind a stack of dog eared comic books Yixing hasn't been able to find since October, when his coworker asked to borrow one.  

“How did you…”  Yixing blinks at Lu Han’s grin that's wide enough to crinkle up the soft skin around his eyes.  

“This is it, right?”  

“You cleaned that whole closet in two minutes!  Possibly less!”

“Can we go swimming now?”

Lu Han tells Yixing more of his childhood memories about swimming and rivers and rain as they walk to the community center.  Yixing can't get a word in edgewise though he's content to just listen to the stream of Lu Han’s happy chatter and make sure they don't get hit by a car at the crosswalk.  When they enter the recreational center Yixing pulls Lu Han into the men’s locker room before he can head straight for the water.  

“Change here.  Then we have to shower,” Yixing says, already wriggling into the orange trunks.  They stuff their street clothes into one locker, Lu Han too impatient to fold anything this time.  

Yixing crosses the cold tile floor to the shower room with Lu Han at his heels.  “We have to shower with our clothes on too?” Lu Han laughs when Yixing ducks under the shower head for a quick rinse.  

The pool room echoes.  Yixing fights off the urge to cover his ears.  It's a weekday morning and a group of small children are clustered around a teenage swim instructor at the far end of the pool.  Lu Han jackknifes into the deep end before Yixing can shove a swim cap on his head.  

“You forgot this.”  Yixing dangles the rubber cap over the side of the pool when Lu Han bobs to the surface.  “It’s to cover your hair.  You don't want to wear goggles?”

“Huh?” Lu Han says, struggling to pull the cap over his wet forehead.  He grins and disappears under the water again, swimming all the way to the far end before he reemerges.  

“Never mind.”  Yixing stuffs the goggles in his pocket.  It has a hole in it, but it's only a small one.  

“You're not gonna swim?” Lu Han yells, causing a few old ladies treading water in the slow lane to stare.  Yixing sighs and slips off his sandals so he can dip his feet in the water.  Lu Han slithers back along the bottom of the left lane, slick as an eel.  Yixing yelps when a pair of hands grab his ankles and yank him into the water without warning.

"Are you trying to drown me?" Yixing growls but only because his throat is stinging, his nose full of chlorinated water when Lu Han finally lets him comes up for air.

"You wanna race?"  Lu Han's eyes glint sharp and black.  His fingers grip Yixing's wrist as Yixing tries to pull on the goggles from his pocket.

"No," Yixing says, but Lu Han is already slicing through the water with clean kicks under the surface.  Lu Han can swim almost two laps to Yixing's one.  His strokes are neat and effortlessly efficient.  Soon a whole cluster of little old grandmas have gathered to watch him swim.  They squat near the edge of the pool, oohing and ahing whenever Lu Han surfaces with a laugh to catch his breath.

"Ah, so good looking!" Yixing hears one lady murmur to her friend as he struggles by on his fifth lap.  He's already getting a cramp in his left calf and his face has probably turned red from the exertion.

"He's so _fast!"_ another lady says, and Yixing knows they definitely aren't talking about him.

After another hour Yixing drags himself to the bleachers by the side of the pool to wrap himself in a towel.  He can feel every fiber of muscle in his shoulders and thighs individually outlined in lactic acid burn.  Lu Han doesn't seem to get tired.  Yixing makes a mental note to bring a book the next time they go swimming.  Honestly, though, he's enjoying just sitting here and watching Lu Han's smooth glide through the water.  From up on the bleachers he looks even more like a fish, or perhaps a water snake, all sleek skin and fluid ripples of muscle.  And like that grandma said, he is _fast._  Too fast.  Yixing is glad Baekhyun's not here to get suspicious.

According to the large clock on the far wall, they've been at the pool going on three hours by the time Lu Han hauls himself up the pool ladder and announces that he's hungry.  An old lady sitting a row down from Yixing produces a square of mujigae ddeok from her large vinyl bag and thrusts it at Lu Han with a slight bow.

"Oh, thank you!" he says, turning the plastic wrapped rice cake over in his hands to admire the rainbow layers.  He unwraps one corner and starts nibbling.  "You want some, Xing?"

"Mm, no, I'll wait til we get home and have a real lunch."  Yixing stretches the kinks out of his back and throws the other towel over Lu Han's shoulders.  "Come on, Lu.  Let's go."

"Okay!"  Lu Han hums to himself, still chewing as he pulls off his swim cap and follows Yixing to the locker room.  Yixing has never seen him this excited before.  They'll definitely come back here soon, he thinks with a smile of his own.

 

“Here’s the one you requested.”  Baekhyun stuffs the _Muppets from Space_ DVD case through the cracked open door.  His cheeks are flushed and his chest is heaving.

"Thanks."  Yixing tucks the case under his arm, trying not to stare at his neighbor's panting face.  "Did you... run up the stairs, or something?"

"They should really fix your elevator," Baekhyun growls.  His eyes narrow as he stares back at Yixing.

"Ah yeah, sorry about that. I should have just come down to get it from you myself." Yixing tugs at a wavy wisp of hair that's been tickling the nape of his neck all day.

"No problem.  But are you sure you don’t want to borrow _My Love from the Star_ drama instead?  I have the boxset DVD.”  Baekhyun pulls another set of discs from the tote bag on his shoulder.  

“Baekhyun, the only bearable parts of Korean dramas are the OSTs.”  Yixing makes a move to close the door but Baekhyun shoves his foot in the way.  

“Is that guy still here?"  Baekhyun strains his neck forward, trying to peek through the doorway into the apartment.  Yixing can hear Lu Han singing along to an old DBSK song on the radio as he minces garlic in the kitchen.

"Yup.  I guess he's my roommate now?  Hm," Yixing wonders aloud to himself, though the term seems to fit.

"Yeah, so listen, I heard from the ahjumma down the street at the fruit stand that that guy's like a dolphin, he's like legit a fish or something."  Baekhyun's trying to lower his voice again but Yixing would bet his favorite holey sweatpants that Lu Han can hear the hoarse whisper all the way from the kitchen.

Yixing would knock his forehead into the door lintel if that wouldn't give his frustration away.  He tries to be nice to Baekhyun, he really does, but sometimes Baekhyun makes that a difficult goal to achieve.  "Um, well he likes swimming, anyway,"

"Yeah but if he swims twice as fast as normal humans, that's a little suspicious don't you think?  I mean who does he think he is, Michael Kelp?"

"You mean Michael Phelps?"  Yixing's chuckle is genuine, he can't hide his amusement this time.  "Even I can swim twice as fast as 'normal human' grandmothers," Yixing emphasizes, making quotes in the air with his fingers.   

"Well, but..."  Baekhyun does not look convinced.  His chin juts out as his frown deepens.

"Yeah, and I bet I could swim twice as fast as you if you get breathless just from climbing to the fifth floor!" Lu Han's voice carries from the kitchen.  He doesn't stop chopping vegetables though.  His knife on the bamboo cutting board doesn't miss a beat.

Baekhyun's mouth falls open in surprise, jaw working the air as he teeters on the edge of a verbal outburst.  "He talks!"

"You can speak Korean, too?" Yixing calls in the direction of the kitchen, a bit surprised himself.  "Huh, I guess he must've picked it up from watching TV."  Yixing has noticed that Lu Han is getting pretty good at using slang when they speak in Mandarin, too.  At first he had used rather flowery sentences in their initial conversations, as if he were a character from a classical novel.

"Well, whoever he is, wherever he's from," Baekhyun pauses to give a dramatic sniff, "just make sure you keep an eye on things, you know."  Baekhyun's low whisper cuts into Yixing's thoughts like a scythe.  "And, um, I don't know how to say this delicately, but be on the lookout for tentacles, okay?  Since he seems like he has an affinity for water and all."

Yixing laughs out loud, the back of his head hitting the doorpost by accident this time.  He hopes Lu Han didn't hear Baekhyun's last comment, although it would be satisfying to watch Lu Han take Baekhyun down a notch and teach him some decent manners.  "Alright, Baekhyun.  Thanks for the loan."  Yixing holds up the DVD case and nods his appreciation, waving goodbye until Baekhyun disappears into the stairwell.  

 


	2. Chapter 2

 

"Um, Lu?"  Yixing almost trips over a pile of sneakers in the dark entryway.  The kitchen is dark, too.  He shuffles in sock feet to turn on the side table lamp that divides the living room from the open space of the kitchen.  "Are you home?"

"I'm out here."  Lu Han's voice, softer than usual, draws Yixing's attention to the balcony door that's cracked partway open.  Yixing shoves the curtain aside so he can see through the glass of the sliding door.

"Why are you out there?"  It isn't raining but Yixing didn't need to see the air quality advisory on the forecast to know it's an orange day.  The sunset a few hours earlier had a distinct burnt umber hue, light rays diffused through a brown haze of dust that had clung to the air and Yixing's nasal passages despite his cloth mask.

Lu Han turns and the lamp light from the apartment and the street light outside paint the planes of his face in sharp contrast against the dark sky.  Yixing notices the slight crease between Lu Han's brows before he sees what's cradled in his palms.

"It fell onto the balcony.  I didn't want to take it inside in case it woke up and wanted to fly home."

"Oh," Yixing says, gaze resting on the smooth brown feathers of the sparrow resting in Lu Han's loose grip.  The bird isn't moving but Yixing can see a flutter of heartbeat through its breast.

"Can you fix it?"  Lu han raises his cupped palms to bring the bird to Yixing's eye level.  "Like you fixed me?"

Yixing sighs.  The hangnails on his left thumb snag in his hair when he tries to push his bangs out of his eyes.  The antibacterial soap and alcohol he uses to sterilize his hands between patients always leave his skin dry, no matter how much hand creme he slathers on at home.  "Let's take it inside and see what we can do."

Yixing ushers Lu Han into the kitchen, steadying him with a hand on his back since Lu Han has his hands full.  He closes the blackout curtains to make sure all light from the streetlamps is sealed out.

"Poor thing."  Lu Han lays the sparrow on a clean yellow tea towel he pulls from a hook above the sink.  It looks even smaller engulfed in the terry cloth folds.

"It just... fell?"  Yixing can't see any outward signs of trauma -- no blood, no missing feathers.  Then again he's not a veterinarian.  He wouldn't know how to recognize avian flu in a duck, though he can easily tell the difference between true influenza and a norovirus infection in a human patient.

"I heard a noise, and it was lying on the balcony floor.  Maybe it hit the window?"  Lu Han shrugs but his shoulders don't return to neutral position.  They stay hunched by his ears even when he tries to relax.

"Concussion?  Maybe."  Yixing takes a deep breath and focuses his gaze on the tiny body in front him.  He can feel the chapped skin around his cuticles cracking as he summons the healing energy into his palms.  Despite his post-shift fatigue, the blue light flows easily through his hands into the sparrow's breast.  It's always easier to summon the light with another person in the room, a luxury he's not used to since he has to keep it a secret from everyone at the hospital.

Yixing smiles in relief when the bird's wings shift and refold themselves against its back.  It’s still quiet, as if asleep, but Yixing pulls his hand back and shakes out the lingering tingles with a flick of his wrist.

"Is it okay now? Is it going to wake up?"

Yixing presses his palms down on Lu Han's shoulders, just long enough to remind them how to relax. "I think so. If I apply the light for too long I might shock its system. If the bird is still unconscious in the morning we can try again a bit more."

"Okay. Okay, that's good." Lu Han swings his arms, as if at a loss for what to do with his hands now that they're freed from holding the sparrow. "You're probably exhausted, huh. Sorry for keeping you awake."

"Ah, it's not a problem. I wouldn't have left an injured citizen of the skies laying out on my balcony all night, would I?" Yixing's heart jumps in his chest when Lu Han tips forward, shoulders shaking with the breathy noise of his laughter. Yixing's not used to people laughing at his non-jokes, or even the ones he intends to be funny. "I'm going to eat a quick dinner. Sorry if I keep you awake, I'll try to be quiet."

"I didn't eat yet either." Lu Han gestures at the sparrow sleeping in the towel. "I'm half starved. What were you thinking of having?"

Yixing looks at the clock. It's after 2 AM. "I hope you like pizza, because I ordered one on the way home. Do you want a snack before it gets here?"

They end up on the sofa with a bag of microwave popcorn between them while they wait for the delivery to arrive.  Yixing pulls out an old VHS tape he recorded off TV a few Christmases ago.

"What's this?"  Lu Han has popcorn grease smeared above his lip.  His eyes are curious as the opening titles start to roll.  "... _The Muppet Movie_?"  He sounds the English words out, and Yixing should not be surprised that Lu Han knows English, too.  They should watch _Lord of the Ring_ s next and see if he's is also fluent in Sindarin.

"Oh, it's the Muppets again?  Is Kermit on here?"  Lu Han bounces on his heels tucked under his thighs and his knee knocks into Yixing's.

"Yup.  Just wait and see."  The pizza doesn't take long to arrive and they finish the whole thing before the movie's half over.  Yixing is glad he ordered an extra large this time, because he had a coupon.  Lu Han can eat even more than he does most nights.

Lu Han falls asleep before the end, his head a comfortable weight on Yixing's thigh.  Yixing waits through the final credits until the tape clicks to a stop and VCR ejects it halfway.  Lu Han stirs when Yixing's fingers slip from his hair.  Yixing tries to shift off the couch without waking his housemate.  They really should get Lu Han a proper bed with sheets and a privacy curtain.

Yixing checks on the sparrow once more before turning out the light and bidding his sleeping friends goodnight with a smile.

 

The bird is awake the next day, perched on Lu Han's shoulder when Yixing stumbles into the kitchen.  It’s afternoon already.  He can tell by the strong yellow light streaming in through the open window where the curtains are pushed aside.  

"I was wondering when you'd wake up."  Lu Han huffs a breath of air through his teeth and shoves a plate of fried eggs across the island to Yixing.  The eggs are cold, congealed grease lurking at the edges, but Yixing's stomach feels like a balloon with the air suddenly let out.  He grabs a fork and stabs it through both eggs.

"Thanks," he manages to say through his mouthful.

"You're going to teach Pigeon bad manners."  Lu Han's nose wrinkles in disgust as cold egg yolk dribbles down Yixing's chin, but he hands him a napkin without making a fuss.

"Pigeon?" Yixing asks as soon as he swallows.  He opens the fridge to hunt for the milk carton.

"It's in the door," Lu Han says of the milk without looking over his shoulder.  Now that he does most of the cooking at home he's taken over grocery shopping and arranging the fridge and cabinet shelves as well.

"Thanks."  The paper carton is almost empty so Yixing doesn't bother finding a glass.

"Pigeon.  The bird.  It's a pigeon, right?"

Yixing almost chokes on a swallow of milk when he laughs.  "I don't think so.  It's too small, for one thing.  Isn't it a sparrow?"

"Maybe it will grow as it gets stronger," Lu Han sniffs.  He crosses his legs, tucking his heels on the rung of the bar stool pulled up to the counter.

"Maybe."  Yixing eyes the bird doubtfully.  "How does it seem today?  You think it's ready to go home?"

"Its wing."  Lu Han lowers his shoulder, holding out his index finger for the sparrow to hop onto.  The bird flaps once as it tries to re-perch on Lu Han's hand.  It almost misses his finger, thrown off balance by its right wing that seems unable to unfold all the way

"Hm."  Yixing frowns, wondering why the energy failed to mend the bird's wing.  The sparrow is so small that it shouldn't have taken much of a zap to heal it.  "I could try the light again today, but I'm afraid if apply too much it could do more harm than good.  Maybe we better wait til tonight to try again."

Lu Han nods, satisfied, and hands Yixing an apple and a paring knife.

“When it's better can we take Pigeon to the park?”

Yixing’s fingers tighten on the knife handle and he doesn't look up.  He doesn't want to see the hopeful look on Lu Han’s face.  It’s better not to get attached, not to something wild and free that fell onto their doorstep.  “We’ll see,” Yixing says finally when the silence stretches too thin.  He only relaxes once Lu Han starts whistling to the sparrow, laughing in delight when the bird replies in short chirps.

 

On Saturday they go to the art museum.  There's a special exhibit at the SeMA visiting from the British Museum, _Mythica & Lyrical Legends: Greco-Roman Influences in Pop Culture_.  It's the sort of exhibit Yixing would have dragged Baekhyun to normally, but now that Lu Han's around Yixing would rather stroll through the galleries and explain the artists' backgrounds to him.  

Baekhyun never listens when Yixing mentions anything related to the art history of Earth, and he always tries to touch the oil paintings an hour into the tour so they'll get kicked out early.  Yixing is pleasantly surprised by Lu Han's insightful questions about the art, despite the fact that he's never heard of Henri-Pierre Picou.  Yixing is more than happy to fill him in.  

"What's this one about?"  Lu Han tugs on Yixing's hand, stopping him in front of a large canvas.

"Oh, that's a faun.  A mythical Greek creature.  It's supposed to be half deer, half man.  See?  It's got pointy ears like you," Yixing says, dropping his voice down to a whisper.

"I do not," Lu Han says, “have pointy ears.”  He pulls his hand away from Yixing's loose hold to cup his fingers over his ears, even though they're covered with a gray beanie.  "My ears look nothing like that."

"It's not a bad thing.  I think they're cute!"  Yixing reaches up to poke Lu Han in the cheek.  Lu Han rolls his eyes with a noisy sigh and side steps his reach.  "So is that unicorn."  Yixing points to the tall white steed standing next to the faun in the painting.  The proud unicorn is depicted mid head toss, its mane is caught up in an invisible breeze.

"Don't even try to compare me to a unicorn," Lu Han sniffs, jerking one shoulder up in annoyance.

"So, Pointy Ears," Yixing starts to ask when an exciting question suddenly dawns on him.

"What, no more 'Snow White'?" Lu Han interrupts, flinging a hand to his throat with a faux scandalized gasp.

"--if you're like, a fairy or whatever that flew in from another realm," Yixing continues, intent on getting a straight answer this time, "do you have a pet unicorn?"

Lu Han fixes him with a flat gaze, leaning into Yixing's space until their foreheads nearly bump together.  "I'm not a fairy or a faun, duh.  I told you I'm a nixie, a river spirit."

"A spirit?"  Yixing pinches the pout of Lu Han's closest cheek.  "You sure seem like flesh and blood to me."

 _"Ow."_  Lu Han knocks his hand away but Yixing just winds his arm around his roommate's waist, drawing Lu Han into his side.  "Spirits can have physical forms, you know."  Lu Han nods in the direction of a marble sculpture of a naiad, featured under a spotlight at the center of the gallery.  

"I guess."  Yixing reaches down to fiddle with the threadbare hem of his favorite band shirt, one Lu Han's taken to borrowing lately.  "But didn't you have a pet unicorn?  Like when you were a kid, back ho--"  Yixing slaps a hand over his mouth, eyes darting over to search Lu Han's.  The last thing he wants is to upset Lu Han enough that he shuts down or storms out.  "Oh sorry, I didn't mean to--  I know you don't like to talk about--"

"Nope."  Lu Han's shoulders don't collapse this time, and his face doesn't shift into a distant, closed off expression.  "Unicorns are most definitely not pets!  Minseok would be offended if he heard that comment."

"Minseok?"

"My high school classmate.  He was a dweeb back then, probably still is today."  Lu Han heaves a big sigh but his smile is fond.  Yixing can feel his lips curl against his cheek as Lu Han presses into him even closer.

"Minseok is a Korean name," Yixing says, still feeling the heat of Lu Han's smile imprinted on his cheek and buzzing in his stomach after he pulls away to admire the painting some more.

"Can we go home," Lu Han says, turning away suddenly but not releasing his grip on Yixing's hand.

 _Sorry,_ Yixing wants to say but says instead, "How about ice cream?"  His guilt over asking Lu Han too many questions is slightly relieved when Lu Han nods in agreement.

They pick up a quart of Baskin Robbin's on the way home.  Yixing lets Lu Han pick out all three flavors: green tea, yogurt, and something with chunks of frozen mango.  They sit on the floor of the living room, the round carton set on the plastic bag spread between them.  They finish the whole thing in the span of an hour.

"I'm sorry I got... upset, at the museum," Lu Han says in a small voice.  The sound breaks their sated silence like a glass marble thrown into a pond.  Yixing watches Lu Han trace the lines on his palm with his index finger.  "I should have explained things to you sooner, but the problem is I don't completely understand it myself.  I guess when the portal closed," Lu Han continues with a shaky breath, "it spit me out here, where it was raining."

"The portal?  You mentioned that before, but I don’t quite understand."  Yixing smiles when he notices a smear of green tea at the corner of Lu Han's mouth.  He hands him the least crumpled paper napkin from the stack.

"The portal is how I visited Minseok and went to our school, and also how I fell into this realm.  But I didn't know I could come to a place like this until it happened."  Lu Han scoots closer, the grommets of his jeans scraping the floorboards as he moves close enough to lay his head in Yixing's lap.  Yixing nods, thinking the portals might work like some sort of wormhole, a time compression perhaps.  Or maybe they’re just pure magic, like Lu Han’s musical rain.

"It's never raining in Unicorn Land,” Lu Han continues, drawing small circles on Yixing’s knee with a bent finger.  “So I could visit there but not stay too long.  It's always green and full of rainbows somehow, but never raining."

"And you like the rain."

Lu Han tips his head up, just enough for Yixing to capture the fullness of his smile with a tracing fingertip.  "Yes.  I think that's why the portal brought me here, to you."

Yixing smiles back, showing his teeth.  He’s glad that Lu Han knows how much he likes the rain, too.  

 

Pigeon sleeps on the yellow towel two more nights.  They feed it crumbs of their toast and mango juice poured into a shallow soy sauce dish.  On the third morning Pigeon isn't perched on Lu Han’s finger, but is swooping around the living room in energetic dips and turns.  Lu Han won't look up from his feet to watch, even when Yixing stands behind him at the counter to rest his palms on his shoulders.

“I guess Pigeon’s all better, huh.”  Lu Han shifts his hips on the barstool, tipping his head back to rest against Yixing’s chest.

“Let's take Pigeon to the balcony before it runs into the window again.”

Lu Han calls the sparrow with a soft whistle and it swoops down to land on his outstretched finger.  Yixing slides open the balcony door, giving Lu Han space to step into the sunlight.  

Pigeon takes off without a backward glance, not circling the window or even chirping to say goodbye.

“I guess it didn't belong here,” Lu Han says, meeting Yixing’s eyes with his dark gaze.  Yixing wants to pull him into a hug but the familiar lines of jealousy twisting Lu Han’s face keep Yixing’s arms stiff at his sides.  “It had somewhere to fly back to.”

“Are you sure you don't, I don't know, want to..." _...go home?_    Yixing understands.  He had a fiancee back home once upon a time, before the crew left him behind on Earth and never came back.  That was a century and a half ago.  Mei must have married someone else by now.  Even Yixing wouldn't wait that long for the return of someone whom everyone must assume to be dead.  

Even if Baekhyun calls him a romantic, Yixing never found the narrative of Penelope’s loyalty convincing, from the first time he read Homer’s _Odyssey_ in a more idealistic era to the present.  He’s never been able to stand the unrealistic romances of the Korean dramas Baekhyun tries to loan him.  Yixing sticks with Sci Fi flicks instead.  He feels oddly justified whenever a hapless space shuttle gets swallowed by a black hole or some kind of monster at the end of a space opera, although he has no idea what really happened to the rest of the Star Challenger crew.  

“Am I sure I don't want to what?”  Lu Han’s voice sounds hard again.  His gaze drops when Yixing doesn't answer aloud.  "Leave?  There's nowhere else to go."  Lu Han bites his lip as he steps back into the kitchen and sinks into the nearest seat.  "I fell and landed on your street because the water portal dried up.  I couldn't get through, I couldn’t get back home."  He frowns intensely at the wall, as if a portal were right in front of him and he were trying and failing to get through.  "I'm not sure if there's anything left on the other side, but if so it has to be all..."  He chokes, and Yixing’s hands slide lower to rub circles into his back.

"I'm not telling you you have to leave."  Yixing’s clumsy fingers graze Lu Han's cheek as he swivels on the bar stool to face Yixing.  Two tears drop from Lu Han's lashes.  They shimmer on his face for a moment before evaporating.

"It must be all dried up," he concludes in a dull voice that feels like lead in Yixing’s stomach.

“You can stay here as long as you’d like,” Yixing says in his most reassuring voice, the one he uses to soothe patients through the initial shock when they're brought into triage.  “I just wanted you to know that I'm glad to help if there's somewhere you wanted to get back too.”  Yixing also knows how that is easier said than done.  

“Thanks,” Lu Han whispers.  He shakes himself, throwing back his shoulders as he stands to turn on the stove.  “Let's eat eggs.  I'm starved.”

It's after 2 AM when Lu Han crawls into Yixing’s bed that night.  Yixing is still awake, eyes open in the dark as images from the day and memories from years ago flit across the ceiling like frames on a film reel.   "Oh, you're here," Yixing says, raising his arm to make room for Lu Han.

"I told you, I'm not leaving.”  Lu Han whispers, though there's no one else in the house to disturb.  “Where would I go?"

"Not leaving's not the same as staying."  Yixing’s toes curl and unclench around the edge of the sheet as he tries to get comfortable again.  Lu Han sighs as he fits the curve of his head into the hollow of Yixing’s shoulder.

"What's the difference, if I don’t want to leave?"

"Oh."  That is different.  Yixing relaxes as Lu Han’s long arms wrap round his back.  He finally falls asleep to the rhythm of careful fingers sifting his hair like strands of seaweed splayed by a current of water.  

 

Lu Han likes his fish wet, raw.  Actually, he prefers to eat fruit and vegetables fresh and uncooked too.  Since Lu Han does most of the shopping at the neighborhood produce stalls Yixing has stopped buying instant noodles and frozen dumplings from the big supermarket.  If Lu Han doesn't feel like cooking Yixing picks up a few trays of discounted sashimi from Emart on his way home.  On weeks when Yixing works more shifts than he has days off they eat a lot of sushi.

"Wow, are you trying to make salmon go extinct?” Baekhyun calls from the balcony as Yixing trudges up to his building.  Baekhyun points at the sushi tray Yixing is carrying, the third one this week.  

“No,” Yixing says, frowning at the twinge of guilt welling in his stomach at Baekhyun’s comment, even though he knows his neighbor is a total tease.  “Not any more than you're trying to with chickens.”

“I just think it's strange you've adjusted your whole diet to accommodate that dude who just up and fell into your lap.  He acts like a foreigner who can't stomach kimchi.”

“Obviously he's a foreigner, Baekhyun.  So am I.  You can kinda tell from our names.”  Yixing groans when he pats through both his front and back pockets but still can't find his keys.  

“Yeah, but don't they have elevators in China?  It's weird that dude didn't even know how to use the lift when he moved in with you.”

Yixing just laughs, sighing with internal relief when he finds his key ring in the side pocket of his backpack.  “Lu Han must have hit his head pretty hard when he landed on the asphalt, since he was covered in bruises.  That kind of head trauma can affect one’s memory.  Besides, Baek, it's a wonder any of us remember how to use the elevator when it's out of order 90% of the time.”

"I still think it's just too strange!” Baekhyun yells from the balcony.  “Conveniently like a makjang.  I think he's hiding something.  Or maybe you are, Yixing."  Yixing can feel Baekhyun’s gaze bore into him, even from five stories up.

"You think aliens are less strange than amnesia?”  Yixing huffs out another laugh, feeling frustration starting to burn at the back of his throat.  As soon as he thinks his neighbor has decided to trust him Baekhyun tries to interrogate him again.  “Trust me, Baekhyun.  I work in the ER.  Amnesia may not be as common in real life as it is on TV, but it happens.  Plus, what could I hide from you?  I've lived across from you for eight years now.  I think your _thoroughness,"_ he gestures to the binoculars, "would have uncovered my secrets by now, if I had any."

"True."  The anger in Baekhyun’s voice deflates as he puffs up at the placating compliment.  He turns to go, seeming satisfied for the moment.  "Just remember, I've got my eyes on you."

"See you around, Baekhyun."  The sliding doors open to admit Yixing.  The sign hanging on the elevator still says, OUT OF ORDER.  Of course.  

Yixing feels almost better by the time he stomps up the stairs.  He kicks open the door and almost trips over Lu Han, who is hovering in the entryway.  

“Were you talking to Baekhyun?  I heard yelling.”  Lu Han takes the sushi tray from Yixing so he can untie his shoes.  

“That guy.  So obsessed with aliens.  He should move to Roswell.”  Yixing tosses his backpack into the closet with a groan.  Somehow he can feel the ache in his muscles even more acutely once the extra weight has been relieved.  

“Roswell?”  Lu Han's voice sounds distracted as he peeks in the bag.  “Where's that?”  

“New Mexico, in America,” Yixing says, realizing that probably doesn't explain much to Lu Han.  “Baekhyun thinks you're an alien.  Like, another species, from outer space.  He's trying to collect evidence so he can report you to the NIS.”

“Oh, is that what's with the binoculars?”  Lu Han opens the tray and slides it onto the table. He has already set out the dishes and chopsticks.  “Why is he so suspicious?”

“He’s suspicious of everyone, myself included.  But Baekhyun's especially intrigued by you because you fell from the sky.  Or so he claims.”  Yixing snags the soy sauce from the shelf above the stove.  The free packets that come with takeout sushi always taste weird to him.

“I would've died if I fell to the pavement from outer space.”  Lu Han tilts his head, pausing for a moment on his trajectory to the fridge.  "But he's not entirely wrong."  Lu Han pulls a half empty tube of wasabi out from the fridge and adds a generous squeeze to a small blue dish.

"You don't sound surprised."  Yixing uncaps the soy sauce and pours a splash over the wasabi paste.

"Eh, I already knew your friend was a bit out there.  I think I'd be more surprised if I actually met an alien."

Yixing raises his eyebrows as Lu Han stuffs a shrimp nigiri in his mouth.  "What if you already have?"

Lu Han laughs, flecks of half chewed rice spraying onto the glass table cover.  "You're almost as funny as he is, Xing!  Hurry up and take some food before I eat it all, you slowpoke."

 

“Ah!”  Lu Han sits down hard on the nearest barstool, slippers hitting the floor as his feet swing in shock.

“What's wrong?”  Yixing sucks in a sharp breath as he turns to see a drop of blood welling up at the seam of a cut on Lu Han’s finger.  Lu Han stares, still clutching the handle of the chopping knife.  “How did you manage to do that?” Yixing says, but his tone isn't scolding.  He's just surprised that Lu Han could be this clumsy with a knife when he's always so light and quick, airy.  

“Can you fix me?”  Lu Han hold out his hand but he pulls it back to rest on the counter as Yixing steps closer.  Yixing places his palm above Lu Han’s finger, as close as he can get without touching the wounded skin.  Lu Han takes the opportunity to shift even closer, wrapping his other arm around the back of Yixing’s thigh as Yixing’s knee bumps the rung of the barstool.  

A second later Yixing draws back to examine his work.  He smiles, pleased when he can't find even a hint of a scar on Lu Han’s flawless, smooth skin.  “You heal so well, Lu.”  

“Is that your idea of a compliment?” Lu Han snorts, but Yixing doesn't miss the slight blush shading the hollows under his cheekbones.  Yixing just pats his arm, easing his hips out of Lu Han’s hold so he can take the seat beside him.  

Lu Han clears his throat, repositioning the knife against the half chopped carrot.  "So that blue light, how did you learn to do that?  Did you come from another realm through a portal, too?"

"No."  Yixing takes a deep breath as he toys with the carrot top on the edge of the cutting board.  He's still considering how much he can tell Lu Han, how much he trusts him not to talk, but Lu Han has shared his own story so Yixing would feel duplicitous withholding from him.  

Besides, Yixing wants to tell Lu Han everything, from the funny jokes Nurse Sehun made in the break room this morning to the small details of his childhood memories no one else would find interesting.  No one besides Lu Han, perhaps.  Yixing has never met anyone so attentive, even back home on Planet 357.

“Not exactly,” Yixing tries again, fingers grasping at the carrot leaves as he searches for the right words.  “I came on a spacecraft, but we used wormholes to travel.  I guess those are kinda like portholes?”  

Lu Han blinks, his lashes fluttering like hummingbird wings.  “So you're not from Earth, either.  See, that's what I thought.”  Lu Han’s lips quiver, distracting Yixing’s gaze until he suddenly bursts into laughter.  

“What,” Yixing mutters through his teeth, “you don't believe me?”

“No!”  Lu Han hiccups as he tries to catch his breath.  “I think it's hilarious that Baekhyun-- that Baekhy--!”  Another peal of high pitched laughter overwhelms Lu Han and he collapses against Yixing, shoulders heaving and the pointed tips of his ears starting to bloom red.  

Yixing pats him on the back, trying to stay seated despite Lu Han’s flailing.  He would find the irony hilarious as well, Baekhyun seeing alien shadows lurking in every alleyway while living across the courtyard from one, if his neighbor we weren't so insufferable about it.  And if Yixing didn't have so much to lose should Baekhyun learn the truth.  Somehow, he thinks, a hard lump rising in his throat, the stakes have only been raised since Lu Han showed up on his doorstep.  

“So-- so why did you come to earth then?”  Lu Han sits up as he finally catches his breath, still leaning his shoulder into Yixing’s.  “Did you get lost?”

“Not lost.  We made a detour.  Earth is a decent stopover place for refilling water reserves.”

“We?”  Lu Han narrows his eyes.  He doesn't press the question, but Yixing can feel him waiting for an answer in the pause that stretches into silence.  

“I got left behind.  As a point of contact for the shuttle navigator on the return trip.”  Yixing presses his eyes shut against the flood of memories.  He sees the commander of the Star Challenger saluting as the rest of the crew file back on board, leaving him in the Gobi desert with nothing but a solar-powered wireless and a flask of water.  He sees Mei waving goodbye to him from the observation deck at lift off from Planet 357.  He can see the red streaks of the sunset the last time Mei walked with him through the grape arbor.  It doesn't hurt anymore unless he closes his eyes and leans into the memories, so Yixing opens them to fix his gaze on Lu Han’s soft smile.  

“When is the return voyage?”  Lu Han’s voice is small but his smile doesn't waver.  

“It should have been a hundred and thirty years ago.  They're not coming back.  Either the route changed, or something happened to them.”  Yixing frowns, trying to focus his mind on Lu Han in front of him instead of letting his thoughts spiral into the endless game of what if.  He doesn't want to dwell on the past.  Not today, with Lu Han beside him and a half chopped carrot on the cutting board between them.

"Aren't you sad you can't go home?"

"No.  I like living here well enough.  I like my work at the hospital.  I like the smell of Earth rain, too."   _I like it all so much more now that you're here,_  Yixing thinks about saying out loud, but the words catch in his throat like a hiccup.  "What about you?"  Yixing nudges Lu Han’s knee with his own, just to feel the comforting warmth of his body heat bleeding through the denim of his jeans. 

"The river was bound to dry up sooner or later, I always knew that.  I guess I should have been more careful if I wasn't ready to leave yet."  Lu Han shakes his head.  Yixing’s not sure how to interpret any of his gestures in this sort of conversation.  

"What do you mean, 'sooner or later'?"

"Well, a water realm will dry up if no one plays the rain songs to make it rain.  After my grandmother died it was just me living alone there, so if I didn't water everything, it just…”  Lu Han waves his hands, grasping at air.  “Basically it was my fault.  I was gone for too long and let it dry up, so I shouldn't complain that I can't go back."  Lu Han’s shoulders cave and Yixing’s stomach does a flip flop, as if last night’s sushi has come alive in his belly.

"Gosh, making it rain, keeping a whole world alive...That sounds like a lot of pressure.  You shouldn't blame yourself, okay?"  Yixing nudges his arm until Lu Han’s head drops onto his shoulder.  "How come you were away from your realm for so long, though?  Did you just get bored and leave?"  It sounds lonely, living all alone in the world.  Yixing is used to living alone in his apartment, but not in a realm completely devoid of voices in the hallways and bodies flowing past him on and off the subway.

"I guess I would have gotten bored if I never left.  I spent too much time bothering Minseok at his parent's house, in Unicorn Land.  And when I realized how many days it had been since I went home to water everything, it was too late.  The portal wouldn't--”  Lu Han chokes on a dry sob and Yixing’s arms move on instinct to wrap him up in a hug.  

“I'm sorry you can't go back.  But thank you for being with me, and for making it rain here in the apartment.  I love dancing in the rain."  

Lu Han sighs, and this time it's contented.  His hair ruffles under Yixing's chin as he settles into their embrace.  “Thanks, Xingxing.  I'm glad I have you, too.”

"And at least you still have Minseok?  Assuming that portal's not locked..."

“That I don’t know.”  Lu Han closes his eyes but his lips stay parted, his breathing rising in pitch.  “I’ve been afraid to try.  I couldn’t bear to lose access to that realm at the same time.”  Yixing understands this feeling, too.  He lets his fingers slide into Lu Han’s golden curls, stroking until Lu Han falls asleep on his shoulder.

 

The answer to Yixing’s question comes less than a week later, while Lu Han and Yixing are having a jam session in the living room.  After a few rounds of variations on the theme of Lu Han’s rain song, Yixing starts to play "Rainbow Connection", the song Kermit sings in what has become Lu Han’s favorite movie.  As Yixing starts to sing the first verse, a cloud of vapor starts to gather at the center of the living room.  Yixing can't tear his eyes away when a slender silhouette solidifies in the center of the mist.

"Where have you been."  A short guy with a disgruntled nose shakes the clinging water droplets from his limbs as he emerges from the cloud.  The rain puddles and vapor cloud start to dissipate but challenging look remains on his face as he raises his eyebrows at Lu Han.

"Minseok!"  Lu Han sets the flute on the kitchen counter and reels the new arrival into his arms for a big hug.  “How did you find me?  I wasn’t sure if…”  Lu Han pulls back to look his friend in the eye before throwing his arms around him once more.  

"You played our theme song.  Obviously I'm gonna show up if I hear that.  I'm not deaf, I'll have you know."  Minseok tries to pull away but Lu Han just squeezes him tighter.  "Mm, I missed you, Minseok!  Long time no see."

"And who's fault is that, exactly?" Minseok says, still not giving in to Lu Han’s hug.  “I’ve been looking for you, you know.  I was so worried when I couldn’t get through to your realm.”

"That’s…  I can tell you about that later.”  Lu Han stumbles over the words, darting a glance to Yixing.  Yixing nods, giving him a reassuring smile.  “I was busy."  Lu Han shrugs.  "Anyway, you found me and you're here.  Hey, this is Yixing.  We live together now."

"Hi."  Yixing waves, wondering if 'unicorn' means something different to Lu Han than does to him, because the skinny, dark eyed guy who just showed up in his living room looks a lot like a human.  No spiral horn, no long swishy tail.  "It's nice to meet you.  I heard you're a unicorn?"

Minseok rolls his eyes, and his shoulders roll with them.  "I'm not gonna shift just to prove it to you.  Plus, I don’t exactly see any rainbows around here.  No rainbows, no luck.”

"Wait, you can shape shift?  That is awesome!" Yixing whispers, his vocal cords forgetting for a moment how to function.

"Yes, I am awesome.  But what can you do?" Minseok challenges Yixing with a reproachful glare, managing to stare down the bridge of his nose at Yixing even though he's shorter.  "Lick your elbow?  Ride a unicycle backwards?"

"No."  Yixing shrugs.  "I'm not that exciting.  I just like music and hospitals."   _And Lu Han._

"You can find out about Xing's secret talent if you let me punch you," Lu Han suggests to Minseok with a wicked grin.

"Maybe next time."  Minseok scoots away from both of them and shakes his head, tossing his hair into place.  "Lu Han, the reason I came is to invite you for the holiday.  My mom misses feeding you,  and I sorta miss you too.  But for now I've got to run, guys.  I have to teach a class in ten minutes."

"Okay, I love you, Minseokkie."  Lu Han squeezes Minseok around the neck until he gags, and Yixing thinks he might easily confuse them for grade school kids if he squints.

"You better not be late for Chuseok, Lu."  With click of his tongue Minseok pulls out of Lu Han's embrace, spins around on his heel, and evaporates from the room leaving only a faint trail of silver wafting in the air behind him.

"Wait a minute..."  Yixing turns to stare at Lu Han.  "What Minseok said about shifting, does that mean you can transform too?"

"It's called 'shape-shifting', Yixing.  I am not a Gundam robot."  Lu Han shakes his head in mock disdain but can't suppress his grin.

Yixing pokes him in the face until his cheek squishes up in an even bigger smile.  "Is that a yes, then?  You can shape-shift?"

"Didn't you know my name means deer?"

Yixing gurgles in surprise and Lu Han just shakes his head.  "...You're a deer?  But you eat sushi."

Lu Han shrugs and slips his arms around Yixing's waist for a squeeze.  "So?  You eat it, too."  He sighs, tugging on Yixing's hand to pull him onto the sofa.  "You're not miffed, are you?  It's not that I haven't shifted in front of you because I'm trying to hide something.  I don't have to shift every time I'm near the water.  It's just that it's a possibility, one of the perks of being a nixie."

"Then why haven't you?  I mean, tried it in front of me."

"I know you always close the blinds when you..." Lu Han wiggles his fingers, miming Yixing's energy pull.  "That's so Baekhyun can't see the blue light, right?"

"Well yeah, but don't let that stop you from shifting in the shower when you feel like it!"  Yixing laughs and tweaks Lu Han's nose.  "No way can he see into our bathroom, even with those high precision binoculars of his."

"Duly noted."  Lu Han stretches out on the cushions, lifting his feet into Yixing's lap.

"So are you gonna go stay with Minseok like he wants?"  Yixing finds an interesting spot on the carpet to stare at as he absently strokes Lu Han's feet through his socks.

"I can't stay in Unicorn Land for more than a few days at a time, or my skin starts to peel off because it's so dry there.  But yeah, I guess we can go stay with Minseokkie when have you some days off.  If you want to."

"We?"  Yixing's head snaps up at Lu Han's words.

"I already told you."  Lu Han shakes his head with a sigh but his attempt at annoyance isn't convincing when his voice is so soft, so familiar.  He takes Yixing's hand in his, thumb rubbing at Yixing's knuckles in slow circles.  "I'm not going to leave you, Yixing.  That means we go together."

"Let's go for Chuseok, then!  I have three days off for the holiday."  Yixing bounces his hips on the sofa cushion in his excitement and Lu Han tips his head back and laughs.

"Sounds like a plan, Xing.  I'll let Minseok know we're coming."

 

"So there's one more pressing question I'm dying to know the answer to," Yixing announces a few days later while he watches Lu Han dice fresh veggies for a side salad.  "If you could speak Korean and, presumably, Mandarin before coming here, how come..."

Lu Han keeps chopping with neat, careful strokes of his knife but clears his throat expectantly when Yixing trails off. “Yes?”

"How come you didn't talk to me for like, a whole week when you first arrived?" Yixing blurts out.  He's more curious than annoyed, but this question kept him awake last night when Lu Han was sleeping and unable to answer him right away.

"I could barely understand your Mandarin at first.  Your accent's weird."  Lu Han wrinkles his nose at the rapidly diminishing cucumber as he keeps slicing.  "Plus, the Korean they use on those TV variety shows is so full of slang.  It took me awhile to get used to it."

"Hm."  Yixing tips his head to one side in consideration, swiping a piece of cucumber from the board.  "If it's so different, then can you teach me how to swear in the Unicorn Land dialect of Korean?"

Lu Han slaps Yixing's hand away from the cucumber with the flat of his knife blade.  "Cuss words are not slang."  He sniffs, inspecting his progress on the salad.  "But yes, I could teach you a few."

"Hm, on second thought, shouldn't I learn to say hello first?" Yixing teases as he toys with the long fringe of Lu Han's honey colored bangs. "Hey, if we're gonna visit Minseok's family for Chuseok you'd better teach me how to say some nice things, too."

"Do you really trust me to teach you polite greetings when you wouldn't know any better if I taught you something naughty?"  Something dark flashes across Lu Han's eyes.  Yixing coughs in the back of his throat as he pulls a jar of tomato sauce out of the cabinet.  "Thought not," Lu Han smirks while somehow still managing to look cute.  "But how about I teach you how to say, 'Nice to meet you' first?"  He sets down the knife.  Turning to face Yixing's profile, his nose bumps against Yixing's jawline.

"How's that?"  Yixing swallows, temporarily distracted by the gentle curve of Lu Han's smile.

"Like this," Lu Han murmurs as he wraps his arms around Yixing and hugs him, resting his head on Yixing’s shoulder.  

"Oh!" Yixing laughs when they break apart.  "That's definitely friendlier than the Korean I know!"

"Agreed.  Don’t let Minseok’s glaring fool you, he really likes hugs.”

“Well, I really like you,” Yixing says, pulling Lu Han back into his arms for another hug.  “Thank you for staying,” he whispers against Lu Han’s cheek and sighs with contentment when his arms tighten around Yixing’s middle.   

“Of course.”

 

 

_Three weeks later…_

 

"How was your holiday?"  Yixing is startled to find Baekhyun lurking in the shadows outside his apartment building instead of perched on his fifth floor balcony.  Baekhyun flashes him a smile, dipping a hand into Yixing's grocery bag to steal one of his apples.  "You probably couldn't make it all the way home to China for just a three day break, huh.  That sucks."  Baekhyun takes a bite of the apple and the juice drips down his chin in a crooked line.

"You're right.”  Yixing chuckles, thinking of the light years it would take him to get from Earth all the way to Planet 357.  “Home's too far away to visit for a short break, but don't worry.  We went some place way cooler."  Yixing gives Baekhyun a genuine smile and pushes the button for the elevator.  It lights up for once, and he heaves a sigh of relief.  Lu Han texted ten minutes ago, already impatient for Yixing to arrive with the sushi tray and some fruit.  Yixing's hungry too, and he can't wait to relax to the sound of Lu Han's flute after a long shift at the hospital.

"We?"  Baekhyun raises his eyebrows and squints.  He needs a haircut, Yixing thinks.

"I spent the break with Lu Han."  And Minseok, and his parents and twenty seven cousins.  Yixing got plenty of chances to catch up on inside jokes and learn more Unicorn Land slang, and he's looking forward to visiting again over New Years.  

"Oh, is he still around?  I guess that guy turned out okay, then?"

"More than okay.  I think he's more or less perfect."  Yixing winks, then laughs at Baekhyun's answering grimace.  "See you later, Baek."

"Later.  Don't hesitate to alert me if you see anything suspicious in the vicinity."

Yixing laughs again but humors Baekhyun with a smart salute as the elevator doors finally open.  He steps in, bouncing on his heels as he waits impatiently for the lift to deliver him to Lu Han waiting for him upstairs.  It feels good to return after a long day at the ER, and even better when Lu Han is there to greet him with a smile and the sweetest rain Yixing has ever tasted.  After eight years, the fifth floor apartment really feels like home now that Yixing has Lu Han to share it with.  

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case it wasn't clear:
> 
> 1\. Lu Han is a [nixie](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neck_\(water_spirit\)#Germany), except that in this AU he takes the form of a deer not a horse (and he is not evil).
> 
> 2\. Minseok is a [unicorn](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unicorn). With a rainbow mane and tail, yes. 
> 
> 3\. Yixing is an [alien](http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/HumanAliens). And is possibly second cousins with Do Minjoon.
> 
> 4\. Baekhyun is just Baekhyun ♡
> 
> Thanks for reading!


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